1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inkjet printer capable of ejecting ink droplets onto a printing medium and thereby printing a desired image, and particularly relates to an inkjet printer capable of printing an image without leaving any margin on a printing medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an inkjet printer, ink droplets are ejected from nozzles, respectively, so as to print a desired image on a printing medium such as recording paper. Some inkjet printers perform so-called zero-margin printing in which an image is recorded on recording paper without any margin.
An inkjet recording apparatus disclosed in JP-A-2002-211060 (pages 4–6; and FIGS. 1–3) has a paper supply portion capable of stacking a plurality of sheets of paper. Paper is carried and transported from the paper supply portion on a transportation portion provided on transportation belts. Then, ink is ejected onto the paper from an inkjet head. Thus, printing is performed. Here, the transportation portion is formed as protrusion portions (convex portions) on the transportation belts. When the paper is put on the transportation portion, a paper front end detection sensor detects the front end portion of the paper, and a transportation belt position detection sensor detects the position of the transportation portion on the transportation belts. A paper feeding/transporting roller controlled by a control portion rotates to feed the paper from the paper supply portion. Thus, the paper is put on the transportation portion so that both ends of the paper in the paper transporting direction overreach the transportation portion. Then, a recording head is controlled by the control portion to eject ink over an area larger than the size of the paper. Thus, zero-margin printing is performed without leaving any margin on the paper.
The transportation portion is formed thus as protrusion portions on a plurality of transportation belts, and the upper surface of the transportation portion is covered with paper without being exposed. Accordingly, when paper whose length in the paper transporting direction is longer than that of the transportation portion is used, zero-margin printing can be performed with no fear that ink overreaching the front end portion and the rear end portion of the paper adheres to the transportation portion.
In addition, the inkjet recording apparatus disclosed in JP-A-2002-211060 uses a plurality of transportation belts disposed in parallel with one another and at a distance from one another. Accordingly, when zero-margin printings are performed on a plurality of kinds of papers different in length in a direction perpendicular to the paper transporting direction, each of the side portions of the paper in the paper transporting direction is positioned in a space between adjacent ones of the plurality of transportation belts. Thus, zero-margin printing can be performed with no fear that ink overreaching the side portions of the paper adheres to the transportation portion.